December 17 th TO DO: Take out your Social Darwinism package

Social Darwinism: Humans have developed through competition and natural selection with only the strongest surviving. This theory is then applied to society and economics: The rich and powerful are the hardest working and naturally more successful. The poor deserve to be in that position, because they don’t work hard enough. “Survival of the fittest” This theory was also applied to business and international diplomacy.

Charles Darwin’s theory Origin of Species published 1859 Theory: – Animals adapt to their environments to be successful and survive; only the fittest survive and thrive. – Theorized that animals evolve over time to adapt to their environment. Galapagos bird beaks

Paraphrase this quote: “Nature knows no political boundaries. She puts living creatures on this globe and watches the free play of forces. She then confers the master's right on her favorite child, the strongest in courage and industry... The stronger must dominate and not blend with the weaker, thus sacrificing his own greatness. Only the born weakling can view this as cruel.” Confers: grant or bestow Industry: hard work

What is your opinion? Do you agree with this idea? Why or why not? Nature is not restricted by politics. Nature puts humans and animals on this planet and allows them to freely interact with each other. Nature gives power and authority to the favored humans/animals that are stronger, braver and harder working. The strong humans and animals must not interact or breed with people/animals that are less strong, because that would mean they would be giving up some of their strength and skill (especially in their offspring). Only people that are naturally weak or lesser would be upset by this concept. “Nature knows no political boundaries. She puts living creatures on this globe and watches the free play of forces. She then confers the master's right on her favorite child, the strongest in courage and industry... The stronger must dominate and not blend with the weaker, thus sacrificing his own greatness. Only the born weakling can view this as cruel.”

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler used Social Darwinism to justify mass genocide of people he felt to be less worthy: Jewish people, Romany, people with disabilities, homosexuals.

Social Darwinism & Laissez-Faire  Laissez-Faire economics = free market = little government involvement and competition in business was encouraged  industry could flourish and grow (Rise of Monopolies in 1880s)  Darwin’s “natural selection” applied to economy  only the strongest and the hardest working get the benefits of being the best and gaining the wealth  weaker businesses die out  The poor, as William Graham Sumner put it, were unfit to survive and did not deserve charity as that is not the natural way. U.S. economy fully embraced capitalism

Do you think Social Darwinism still exist in our society today?

Fox News, Fox & Friends, 5/21/12 GOODWIN: 5/21/12 “Well, it's interesting. The thing I write about in here is the idea that shame used to be part of this. In other words, people didn't want to accept a handout because they were ashamed to do it. There was a kind of social contract that said you don't do it. You're independent, you're reliant. That was part of the American founding virtue, as Charles Murray calls them. And yet now we look at them, we see this explosion of entitlements. The sense of shame is gone. So I focus this week on food stamps, which I think is a real cultural issue, because it's now 47 million people in the country are on food stamps.”

Fox News, Fox and Friends, 12/6/12 Steve Doocy: Are Low-Income, Disabled People Just "Moochers?" 12/6/12 Questioned why the number of low-income Americans receiving federal disability benefits had increased since 1960, asking, "Are more people getting sick and disabled, or are we just wasting more money?" Later, he asked, "Has the number of people on disability gone up because they are moochers, or because more people need help?"

Barak Obama: Remarks by the President in Conversation on Poverty at Georgetown University, 5/12/15 5/12/15 And over the last 40 years, sadly, I think there's been an effort to either make folks mad at folks at the top, or to be mad at folks at the bottom. And I think the effort to suggest that the poor are sponges, leaches, don't want to work, are lazy, are undeserving, got traction. And, look, it's still being propagated. I mean, I have to say that if you watch Fox News on a regular basis, it is a constant menu -- they will find folks who make me mad. I don't know where they find them. (Laughter.) They're like, I don't want to work, I just want a free Obama phone -- (laughter) -- or whatever. And that becomes an entire narrative -- right? -- that gets worked up. And very rarely do you hear an interview of a waitress -- which is much more typical -- who's raising a couple of kids and is doing everything right but still can't pay the bills.

Daily Show on Poverty Shaming – shaming-is-easily-pro/203647